itting at a bustling bar, she brings the Jealous Tiki God (she won't drink Cosmos anymore because they're "sooo five minutes ago") to her perfect lips (carefully tinted with nude matte lipstick) as she passes unerring judgment on the mural on the wall before her (a multi-hued sunset scene).

"Tiki," utter the nude lips, glistening with Jealous Tiki God juice. "It's all about Tiki Lounge here. And it's very cool."

We're sitting at the back patio at Sutra, College Street's sweet, little darling. And Nude Lips is right; it really is Tiki back here. The whole patio is pure Polynesian - decorated like a Hawaiian-beach-scene-meets-Tom-Ford. Think bamboo pillars, wide rattan parasols, Maui martinis - sorry, martikis - and sand.

Yes, sand. Tucked at the back of this streamlined lounge is a patio ankle-deep in sand. On weeknights you can snag a table among the junior-level media-types, who come here for glasses of Veuve Clicquot. Come Friday, though, the place teems with Marc Jacobs perfume and Roberto Cavalli sling-backs. It's also a date bar. Take someone you want to impress, but don't flinch when the bill comes.

Sutra, a project from Sid Dichter (Souz Dal), touts itself as a "Champagne and oyster bar," and the interior could not be more aptly described. For starters, this cozy, one-level lounge is a stylishly decorated mixture of minimalist chic and retro wood grains. Banquettes are adorned with hanging curtains of beads (a la Rhoda's apartment). The bar is roughly half the length of the floor. Along one wall are six booths which allow for viewing the bar activity and comfortably seat four or more if you don't mind a little less room.